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Cite This: ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2018, 10, 12069−12070
Editorial: Forum on AIE Materials his issue of ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces features a Forum focused on aggregation-induced emission (AIE) materials. AIE represents an unusual photophysical phenomenon that is opposed to the textbook teaching of aggregationcaused quenching (ACQ). In AIE systems, fluorogens are nonemissive in the soluble state, whereas they strongly emit upon aggregation. Since the concept of AIE was first posited by Professor Ben Zhong Tang in 2001,1 AIE-based science and technology has evolved into a field for rational design and applications of novel functional luminogens. During the past decade, we have witnessed rapid advances in this field, and its expansion has involved research over a broad range of areas from organic/materials chemistry to photophysics to biology. For example, designed AIE materials with various chemical structures can emit strong fluorescence and phosphorescence signals, absorb multiple photons, target specific cellular organelles, and conduct photodynamic therapy. Currently, more than 1500 research groups in at least 80 countries in Asia, Europe, Africa, America and Oceania are working in the area of AIE research. As an index for its widespread influence, the topic of AIE was ranked #2 in the areas of Chemistry and Materials Science by Thomson Reuters in its report on Research Fronts 2015.2 In an attempt to reflect rapid progress and provide a broader perspective in this exciting field, we organized this Forum by inviting active AIE researchers to contribute a collection of research articles and reviews. In the current issue of the journal, the relationship between AIE properties and molecular structures were investigated in five papers. Rivard and co-workers synthesized a set of arylsubstituted tellurophenes and elucidated the relationship between molecular structures and their AIE and phosphorescence properties. Tang, Qin, and co-workers exploited click polymerization to polymerize pyrazine-based monomers into polytriazoles with different AIE emission behavior, and studied the structure−property relationship. Kumar and co-workers demonstrated the specific recognition of aliphatic and aromatic amines with AIE-active hexphenylbenzene probe that has a donor−acceptor−donor structure. A photoerasable molecular turnstile with AIE attribute exhibiting reversible photoswitching fluorescence behavior in polymer films was reported by the Liu group. Usuki et al. reported the synthesis of disilane-bridged donor−acceptor−donor luminogens, and studied their photophysical and electrochemical properties. In contrast to purely organic AIE materials, inorganic AIE materials showcase improved photostability and tunable emission for applications in optoelectronic devices. Two groups reviewed work that is inspired by the AIE mechanism, but exploits inorganic nanomaterials. In particular, Zhang and coworkers summarized the AIE properties of copper nanoclusters and their applications in LEDs. Yang and co-workers discussed the effect of supramolecular cross-linking on AIE behaviors of polymer carbon dots. In relation to biological applications, Tian and co-workers presented an excellent review summarizing five years of advances in AIE-based bioprobes. Their paper outlines the
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trends and progress in probe composition, modality, functionality, and applications both in vitro and in vivo. Apparently, the structural diversity and their intrinsically low background signal characteristic of AIE materials satisfy many requirements for biological detection. Three reviews focus on different applications of AIE materials. Bhosale and co-workers summarized recent development of tetraphenyletheylene (TPE) based AIE-active probes for chemo- and biosensing, showing that AIE-active luminogens work efficiently in detecting ions, gases, and organic/biological molecules in solution or solid state. Li and co-workers reviewed enzymeresponsive bioprobes by exploiting the mechanism of AIE. Iyer and co-workers reviewed 1,8-naphthalimide-based AIE luminogens and introduced mechanistic studies as well as the applications in chemo- and biodetection, fabrication of lightemitting diodes (LEDs), and therapeutics and diagnostics. Four groups explored the applications of AIE materials in biological sensing and imaging. Zhang and co-workers synthesized various Zincke’s salt-substituted TPE derivatives and employed them for fluorimetric detection of glutathione and fluorescence imaging of cancer cells. Yu and co-workers reported a multifunctional drug delivery nanostructure constructed by assembling pH-responsive CuS nanoparticles on AIEgencontaining mesoporous silica nanoparticles. The nanocomplex integrating drug delivery, pH response, and thermal effects was employed for in situ monitoring of intracellular drug release. Lin et al. reported the development of caspase-1-specific AIE light-up probes for inhibitor screening of coumarin-originated natural products. Yoon and co-workers synthesized a positively charged AIE probe that can selectively stain the mitochondria membrane. From the concise collection in this Forum, we have seen the most recent progress in the AIE field. Especially, numerous fundamental studies on both mechanistic understanding of AIE behavior and design of novel functional AIE luminogens promote the development and application of AIE materials. We also expect this Forum to attract more scientists from diverse research areas to join and subsequently push the frontiers of AIE research. As Professor Tang often notes during his lecture, “Together we shine, united we soar”. Finally, we wish to dedicate this Forum to Professor Ben Zhong Tang on the occasion of his 60th birthday, and in appreciation of his pioneering contributions to the development of the AIE field.
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Chunhai Fan, Associate Editor Shu Wang, Executive Editor Kirk S. Schanze, Editor-in-Chief Sai Sriharsha M. Konda, Senior Managing Editor AUTHOR INFORMATION
ORCID
Chunhai Fan: 0000-0002-7171-7338 Special Issue: AIE Materials Published: April 18, 2018 12069
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b05203 ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2018, 10, 12069−12070
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
Editorial
Shu Wang: 0000-0001-8781-2535 Sai Sriharsha M. Konda: 0000-0001-6759-3240 Notes
Views expressed in this editorial are those of the authors and not necessarily the views of the ACS.
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REFERENCES
(1) Luo, J.; Xie, Z.; Lam, J. W. Y.; Cheng, L.; Chen, H.; Qiu, C.; Kwok, H. S.; Zhan, X.; Liu, Y.; Zhu, D.; Tang, B. Z. Aggregationinduced Emission of 1-Methyl-1,2,3,4,5-pentaphenylsilole. Chem. Commun. 2001, 1740−1741. (2) https://clarivate.com/products/essential-science-indicators/.
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DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b05203 ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2018, 10, 12069−12070
